Unlocking prevention in integrated care systems: A guide to balancing short- and longer-term impact (October 2024)

Summary

Local leaders at neighbourhood, place and system level are primed to deliver the major shift from treatment to prevention, envisaged by the new government. This guide from the NHS Confederation translates the findings of its research into the practical steps integrated care systems (ICS) can take to make the shift towards prevention.

It outlines how system action can unlock prevention and, by taking a proactive targeted approach to prevention, improve outcomes and relieve some of the pressures of today, while building momentum for long-term transformation. It explores practical considerations, grounded in the realities of today’s pressures, for leaders looking to move forward decisively with the delivery of their strategic prevention agenda by demonstrating impact in the short term. It includes emerging thinking and prompt questions to support leaders in system-level discussions, together with case studies to bring to life examples of how system partners are driving forward progress in practice, based on Newton’s work around targeted, proactive prevention.